Draining holder

ABSTRACT

A holder that will support one or more desired items, for example, tooth brushes, brushes, razors, or other items, in a manner that positions the bristled or used portion thereof is held outwardly beyond a front edge of a support device so that when the holder is positioned adjacent a sink or an edge of a counter, liquids or other materials on the held item will drain away from the held item whether it is a tooth brush, a make-up brush or some other item, into the sink or a container positioned beneath the counter edge.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright or mask work protection. The copyright or mask work owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright or mask work rights whatsoever.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This disclosure relates to holders that will allow items to drain into a sink or other container and more specifically to holders which permit water or other liquid to drain away from items, such as, for example, a tooth brush and the bristles thereof, other forms of brushes, razors or other items where draining liquid might have to be dealt with.

INTRODUCTION

Glossary: As used throughout this document:

The term or phrase “item” or “items” shall mean and refer to a wide variety of devices, including those in kitchens, bathrooms, around a home or business, that is or may become wetted at some point in its use and would benefit from being supported and held in a manner so that the wetting liquid can drain into a sink or container effectively without dripping on other surfaces.

The phrase “tooth brush” shall mean any form of tooth cleaning item, instrument, mechanism or device, whether in a one piece form, a multi-piece form, a portion of a motorized tooth cleaner or any other form of a tooth or teeth cleaning item, instrument, mechanism, or device.

The term “holder” shall include any form of support that will hold or support an item used in the home, office or when traveling that when used is wetted and as it dries may likely drip and therefor needs to be held or supported in a way that permits liquid on or adjacent an end of the item, for example the bristles or other portions of a brush or tooth brush or a razor to drain away from the held item and to drain toward and preferably into an adjacent sink or container and not toward the handle or other portions of the held item.

DESCRIPTION OF PRESENTLY PREFERRED EXAMPLES OF THE INVENTION Brief Description of Figures

The invention is better understood by reading the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a holder;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a frontal perspective view of another embodiment of a holder;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 7-10 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 7 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 7, 8 and 10, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 9

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 12-15 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 11 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 12, 13 and 15, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 17-20 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 16 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 17, 18 and 20, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 19;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 22-25 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 21 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 22, 23, and 24, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 25;

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 27-30 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 16 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 28, 28 and 30, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 29;

FIG. 31 is a side view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 32-35 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 16 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 32, 33 and 34, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 35;

FIG. 36 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 37-40 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 36 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 37, 38 and 40, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 39;

FIG. 41 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 42-45 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 41 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 42, 43 and 45, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 44;

FIG. 46 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 47-50 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 46 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 47, 48 and 50, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 49;

FIG. 51 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 52-55 show other views of the embodiment of FIG. 51 including front, rear and side elevational in FIGS. 52, 53 and 55, respectively, and a top plan view in FIG. 54; and

FIG. 56 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1-3 show a holder 10 according to the present invention where a support member 12 is connected to a base 14 comprised of a bottom member 16, that can be weighted, and a support post 18 extending between a bottom surface 20 of the support member 12 and the center portion of a top surface 22 of bottom member 16.

FIG. 1 shows the holder 10 positioned on a sink 24 and, for example, a tooth brush 26 is shown in one position on holder 10. The sink 24 and tooth brush 26 are shown in phantom in order to show but one example of a held item and the environment of in which holder 10 could be used. It should be understood that holder 10 could also position a tooth brush, a make-up brush, a razor or other items, as defined above, in a position that would locate an end of the held item in an extended position out over the edge of a sink or, alternatively, the holder 10 could be positioned adjacent a edge of a counter or other support so that the held item would be located beyond the edge thereof and thus drip, for example, into a container placed there below to catch drips.

Also shown in FIG. 2 in greater detail is the presence of a front edge 30, a side edge 32 on the left, a rear edge 34 and a right side edge 36. A plurality of concave shaped support slots or grooves 40 extend between the front and rear edges 30 and 34, respectively, and are separated by raised lands or ribs 42 that run parallel to slots 40. While four slots 40 and five raised lands 42 are shown in FIG. 2 that is only exemplary as the number of support slots could range from one to many more than the four shown.

FIG. 5 shows that support member 12 is angled at an angle 44 of about 5° to about 30°, with the preferred angle being about 10°, from horizontal. Further, the support member 12 extends outwardly beyond base 14, and bottom member 16 with the front edge 30 ending at a spaced, forwardly projected location beyond the front portion of bottom member 16. This forward projection allows the front edge 30 to overlie the edge of a sink, when holder 10 is positioned adjacent the sink edge as shown in FIG. 1, so that when combined with the angled support member 12 a tooth brush 26, or other held item, will itself extend forwardly beyond the front edge 30 and water or liquid can drip into sink 24. Thus, when a held item is placed within and supported by one of the slots 40, with the end of the held item will extend beyond front edge 30. Where the item is a tooth brush, this precludes draining liquid, and perhaps tooth paste or user residues, from draining down along the shaft of the tooth brush and into a holder that is designed to hold tooth brushes in a vertical orientation.

Common types of tooth brush holders include horizontal rings, supported in a number of ways, but frequently they are mounted on a wall or as part of a vertical stand or container. Such rings may be formed with cut out or stamped openings that extend around the ring so that a tooth brush handle can be slid into and through one of those openings until the bristles contact the ring with the bristles then supporting in the holder. If such a support ring does not have fully enclosed openings it may have openings each with a front access cut out that allows a narrow part of the tooth brush handle to be inserted into that cut out with either a wider portion of the tooth brush handle with the bristles again supporting the tooth brush within the opening. If the ring belongs to the tooth brush user then having the bristles in contact with the ring's exterior surface may not be an issue or something to be avoided, but in a hotel or when not in the users normal location it is unclear how clean the ring's exterior surface might be and use thereof may be objectionable and unhealthy.

Another frequently provided tooth brush storage device or holder is a simple open top container that could hold one or several tooth brushes. Such containers will effectively store a tooth brush but liquids thereon following use will only drain in a vertical direction toward the bottom of the container. Consequently, accumulated drainage material can build up on the bottom of the container, germ accumulation can take place, tooth brush handles can become sticky or dirty, and any rim or horizontal surfaces can become sources of germs and an area where there can be a build up of dirt and grime. In fully open top containers the bristles of adjacent tooth brushes can also touch one another which again can cause the transfer of germs or other cells. Further, most supports of the horizontal supports only permit the holder to be placed on a flat surface adjacent a sink or else where in a bathroom. Consequently, drainage is on that support surface and requires cleaning as a consequence.

Likewise, other items like brushes for make up, paint brushes, razors, or other such items are held in a vertical orientation residues can collect, draining will not be positive for the continued or subsequent use

FIGS. 6-10 show another embodiment for a holder 50 as being comprised of a vertical cup 52, for holding brushes, tooth paste, shaving cream or other supplies, for example, and a support member 54 that is formed as a part of the container 52 or might be separately formed and then bonded thereto by suitable adhesives, such as, for example, an epoxy adhesive.

Support member 54 again has a front edge 56, side edges 58 and 60, and a rear edge 62. The upper surface 64 of support member 54 can include a plurality of grooves 64 separated by lands or ribs 66. As an example of one type of held item, a tooth brush 68, shown in FIG. 6, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 70 to permit liquid to drain into sink 70 when the holder 50 is positioned next to the edge of sink 70. Container 52 can have a shaped base, as shown at 72 or could simply have straight side walls adjacent the bottom thereof.

Support member 86 again has a front edge 88, side edges 90 and 92, and a rear edge 94. The upper surface 96 of support member 86 can include a plurality of grooves 96 separated by lands or ribs 98. A tooth brush 100, shown in FIG. 11, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 102 to permit liquid to drain into sink 102 when the holder 80 is positioned next to the edge of sink 102.

These parts, the base 82, the vertical support 84 and the support member 86 can be formed as an integral, one piece unit or formed from separate parts and then assembled into the structure as shown. It should be understood that the location of vertical support 84, shown as being in the approximate center of the base 82 and intersecting a rear portion of support member 86, could vary from the position shown. For example, the vertical support 84 could be angled, it could be connected to a rear edge 87 of base 82 as is shown at 89 in FIG. 15, it could also be connected to a side of the base 82, as shown in FIG. 12 at 85, and then be attached to the support member 86 at one side, for example side 90.

FIGS. 16-20 show another embodiment for a holder 110 as being comprised of a shaped one piece structure having a support area 112 a left side 114 a right side 116 with each of the sides terminating at a bottom edge 118 and 120 respectively. As shown in FIGS. 16 and 20 sides 114 and 116 can include a cut-out portion 122 and 124 that can have a variety of shapes to coordinate and blend with the overall design of the holder device 110.

The support area 112 has a front edge 126 and a rear edge 128. The upper surface 128 of support area 112 can include a plurality of grooves 130 that are separated by lands or ribs 132. A tooth brush, shown at 134 in FIG. 16, can drain into sink 136 when the holder 110 is positioned adjacent sink 136. As with the previous embodiments the front edge 126 will project forwardly and that projection can be increased, as shown in FIG. 20 by extending the upper service 128 as shown in dotted line in 138 and by extending the front of both sides 114 and 116 as shown in phantom in FIG. 20 at 140.

FIGS. 21-25 show another embodiment for a holder 150 as being comprised of front and rear support legs 152 and 154, respectively, and a support member 156.

Support member 156 again has a front edge 158, side edges 160 and 162, and a rear edge 164. The upper surface of support member 156 can include a plurality of grooves 166 separated by lands or ribs 168. A tooth brush 170, shown in FIG. 21, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 172 to permit liquid to drain into sink 172 when the holder 150 is positioned next to the edge of sink 172.

It should be understood that front edge 158 could be extended forwardly a distance greater than shown, for example, in FIG. 25 to permit front leg or support 152 to be located further back from the edge of sink 172 to assure that the bristles on brush 170 would not only overlie sink 172 but front support leg 152 would be positively located on a support surface of the sink 172.

FIGS. 26-30 show another embodiment for a holder 180 as being comprised of two vertical cups 182 and 184, for holding tooth paste, for example, and a support member 186 that is interconnected into the two adjacent side walls of containers 182 and 184. Preferably the containers 182 and 184 and the support member 186 are formed as an integral unit or they might be separately formed and then bonded thereto by suitable adhesives, such as, for example, an epoxy adhesive.

Support member 186 again has a front edge 188 and a rear edge 190. The support member 186 can include a plurality of grooves 192 separated by lands or ribs 194. A tooth brush 196, shown in FIG. 26, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 198 to permit liquid to drain into sink 198 when the holder 180 is positioned next to the edge of sink 198.

As an alternative the front edge 188 could be further extended as shown at 189 in FIG. 29 to provide a more forwardly projecting front edge that might better position the bristle section of brush 196 in a more forwardly location over sink 198.

As another alternative, with reference to FIG. 27 rather than having the left cup 182 directly connected to support 186 a cup support base 183 which is connected to a vertical upright support 185 could be provided with the top portion of the vertical support 185 being connected to the left edge portion of support member 186. In that configuration, a separate drinking glass or cup that is free of any support function could be held in the cup support base 183 and thus freely useable for drinking purposes.

FIGS. 31-35 show another embodiment for a holder 200 as being comprised of a square base 202 having sides 204 and 206, a front support 208 and a rear support 210. Two side supports, 212 and 214 are respectively connected to sides 204 and 206 and will support sides 218 and 220, respectively of support member 216.

Support member 216 also has a front edge 221 and a rear edge 222. The upper surface of support member 216 can again include a plurality of grooves 224 separated by lands or ribs 226. A tooth brush 228, shown in FIG. 31, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 230 to permit liquid to drain into sink 230 when the holder 200 is positioned next to the edge of sink 230.

In this embodiment as well, the front edge 220 could be extended to a more forwardly position as shown in dotted line at 232 in FIG. 35 to permit the bristle portion of brush 228 to be positioned in a more forwardly location over sink 230.

FIGS. 36-40 show another embodiment for a holder 240 as being comprised of a support including a base 242, a rear support wall 244 and a tooth brush support member 246.

Support member 246 again has a front edge 248, a rear edge 250 and left and right side edges 252 and 254, respectively. The upper surface of support member 246 can include a plurality of grooves 256 separated by lands or ribs 258. A tooth brush 260, shown in FIG. 36, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 262 to permit liquid to drain into sink 262 when the holder 240 is positioned next to the edge of sink 262.

It should be understood that the base 242 the rear support 244 and support member 246 can be formed as an integral one piece unit, for example by being molded from a plastic or thermal plastic material, from porcelain or other moldable material.

FIGS. 41-45 show another embodiment for a holder 270 as being comprised of a vertical cup 272, for holding tooth paste, for example, and a pair of support members 274 and 276 that are connected to a support ring 278 by adhesive, or by being integrally molded therewith or by any other convenient fastening technique that will assure that support members 274 and 276 stay connected to support ring 278.

Each support member 274 and 276 has a shallow cylindrical form to provide a support groove to 280 and 282, respectively. Each support member 274 and 276 has a front edge 284 and 286, respectively as well as rear edges 288 and 290. As shown in FIGS. 44 and 45 the front edges of supports 274 and 276 could also be formed so that they extend to a more forward position as shown in dotted line in 292 thereby assuring that the bristle part of brush 294 will overlie sink 296.

Support ring 278 can, in one embodiment; itself be secured to container 272. Alternatively ring 278 could be formed so that it would either have a degree of elasticity or yield ability so that it would be slidable onto container 272 and be held in place by its physical characteristics. As still another alternative, the container 272 could be tapered in a manner so that as ring 278 was positioned over the top edge and moved downwardly, it would intersect an increasingly enlarging diameter or cross section of container 272 (not shown).

FIGS. 46-50 show another embodiment for a holder 300 as being comprised of a support member 302 that includes left and right deepening side walls 304 and 306. The support member 302 and its two side walls 304 and 306 are preferably formed or molded as an integral one piece structure from plastics, thermal plastics, clay, porcelain, or other moldable materials.

Support member 302 again has a front edge 308, rear edge 310 and left and right side edges 312 and 314 respectively. The upper surface of support member 302 can include a plurality of grooves 316 separated by lands or ribs 318. A tooth brush 320, shown in FIG. 46, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 322 to permit liquid to drain into sink 322 when the holder 300 is positioned next to the edge of sink 322.

FIGS. 51-55 show another embodiment for a holder 330 as being comprised of a block of material having a bottom edge 302, left and right sides 304 and 306 respectively, a front wall service 308 and a rear wall service 310. The upper support service of holder 330 is defined by formed or shaped grooves or slots 312 that are separated by ribs 314. As shown front wall 308 has a lower vertical height then rear wall 310 so that the grooves 312 slope downwardly from the rear to the front of holder 330. The grooves 312 along with front wall 308 could each be moved to more forwardly positions, as shown at 316 and 318, respectively, in FIG. 54.

A tooth brush 320, shown in FIG. 51, can again be supported in a forwardly extended position over sink 322 to permit liquid to drain into sink 322 when the holder 330 is positioned next to the edge of sink 322.

With reference to FIG. 56 a travel version of a holder is shown at 340 as being comprised of a molded base 342, which is itself comprised of front wall 344, a top wall 346, a rear wall 347, and having a right end 348 and a left end 350. At the left end 350 there a separate hollow container 351 can be formed which is comprised of a top wall 352, a bottom wall 353, a front wall 354, a rear wall 356, and a side wall 358. The hollow container 351 can be formed as an integral part of holder 340, with even access to the opposite end, or it could be formed separately and subsequently attached in place by suitable adhesives. Walls 344, 346, 347 and 348 preferably define a, elongated, hollow interior with either top wall 346 having an openable lid defined by dotted line 360, or alternatively end wall 348 could be arranged to be opened. Consequently, the interior would form a hollow compartment to hold the tooth brush, toothpaste or other like articles or supplies that coordinate with the item intended to be held by the holder 340.

The container 351 at the right end 350 could, for example, have one of the walls be removable or openable along a hinge, for example, or it could include a removable outer cover, for example, which might be formed from walls 352-358, that then could slidingly fit over mating complementary walls on holder 340. Thus, container 351 could hold dental floss or other material with a suitable outlet for the dental floss being included (not shown as one skilled in the art would know how to construct as suitable dental floss hole and cutter), or it could hold a volume of shaving cream, a small selection of pills, or other of a variety of supplies for use when traveling.

The upper service 346 of holder 340 also includes a shaped support area 370 including a plurality of grooves 372 and ribs 374 dividing the grooves. As in the other embodiments grooves 372 are sloped from rear to front and have a front edge 376 that would overlie a sink when holder 340 was positioned thereon.

Each of the above embodiments can be formed, carved, molded, shaped or otherwise manufactured so that they could be made from a variety man made or synthetic or natural occurring materials. Such materials, include, but are not limited to, for example, plastics, thermal plastics, thermal formed plastics, metal, wood, stone, marble, clay, porcelain or other formable or shapeable materials.

While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed holder embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements thereof that can be included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. 

1. A drip draining item holder comprising a shaped support member extending from a front edge to a rear edge and including a shaped upper surface for holding at least one item thereon, and an attached base to hold the support member so that the shaped support member is angled downwardly from the rear edge to the front edge and the front edge is positioned forwardly of the base so that the at least one item supported on the shaped upper surface can extend outwardly beyond the front edge.
 2. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the shaped upper surface includes a plurality of support grooves.
 3. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the support member and base comprise an integral one piece structure.
 4. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the support member includes opposing side edges and the base comprises an extension of one side edge.
 5. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the base comprises an extension of each side edge.
 6. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the base comprises an extension of at least one edge.
 7. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the base includes a downwardly directed extension of the rear edge.
 8. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the base comprises a structure that is separate from the support member.
 9. The holder as in claim 8 wherein the separate structure comprises a holder for at least another item.
 10. The holder as in claim 8 wherein the separate structure comprises a cup.
 11. The holder as in claim 1 wherein the base includes a separate support extending downwardly from a portion of a bottom surface of the support member forwardly of the rear edge and a bottom support.
 12. A holder comprised of a support member including an upper surface comprised of a plurality of grooves, a mounting base connected to the support member, a front edge on the support member that extends forwardly of the base so that an item held within a groove will extend outwardly from and forwardly from the front edge of the support member.
 13. The holder as in claim 12 further including a cup holder connected thereto.
 14. The holder as in claim 12 further including at least one extended housing connected to the holder for providing an enclosed internal space, and a cover that permits access into the enclosed internal space.
 15. The holder as in claim 14 further including a second housing located at an end of the holder. 